We’ve Moved to a New Marina!

Our two month stay at Port Louis Marina had us itching for change. With six weeks left on hurricane season internment, we decided to shake things up and join some other crews we know at Le Phare Bleu Marina, in a small bay just two hours ’round the corner from Port Louis on the southeast side of Grenada. Our friends promised us we’d absolutely love it. They were right. We’re smitten with our new marina!

Before taking our slip, we decided to go for a sail (the wind had other plans, womp, womp) and enjoy some time at anchor. We dropped the hook in Whisper Cove, a relatively remote spot with beautiful views and very deep, clear water, and reacquainted ourselves with the simple pleasures of cruising – reading in the cockpit, grilling on the deck, listening to the cruisers’ net on VHF, and waving hi to passing dinghies. It was a nice taste of how life will be once we resume the normal cruising program.

Then it was on to the marina. From the moment we pulled in, we felt a distinctly different vibe at Le Phare Bleu, which, unlike our old marina, is small, charmingly rustic, and filled with active liveaboards like us – not just a bunch of big, fancy boats put in storage by their owners.

As Brian pulled a tricky stern-to med mooring maneuver, our friend Randy on s/v Moorahme (we met in the Bahamas and again in Puerto Rico) shouted over, “Hey, is this your first time docking that thing?”. It was a funny welcome that got everybody else’s attention. The moment we finished securing our lines, we accepted warm handshakes and were offered cold beers from our new neighbors.

During our first week here, we’ve reunited with other friend boats – the crews of s/v Corpse Pounder and s/v Discofish – and have made tons of new friends too. We’re reveling in a slew of community-organized activities – daily organized workouts, group outings to festivals, hikes, island tours, shopping excursions in town, potlucks, happy hours, and live music right in the marina. We’re active, we’re happy, and we’re increasingly worried that our project list will continue to stagnate, because we’re having too much fun.

And, awesomely, we have much better exposure to cooling breezes on this side of the island. The temperature of our boat has dropped by at least 15 degrees, making a huge difference in our sleep and energy levels. We’re kicking ourselves for frying our brains out at Port Louis for so long.

Check out these shots from our little outing and our new stomping grounds!

Brian at the helm of Nightingale Tune, steering us away from Port Louis Marina, our home for the past two months.

Goodbye fancy boats of Port Louis!

Unfortunately, the wind did not cooperate for sailing.

We spent a pleasant night at anchor out in Clark’s Court Bay, behind Hog Island. It was a nice little teaser for nights to come once hurricane season ends and we begin moving again.

We took a slip at Le Phare Bleu Marina on the southeast side of Grenada. In this slip, we have shore power and the opportunity to use our AC.

Ramp leading from the slips to the pool, resort, restaurant, beach, and other facilities.

The marina shares the property with a beautiful set of eco-resort cottages. The vibe is a little funky hippie-chic, they decorate the open air restaurant with recycled wine bottles. They are the only place we’ve been in the Caribbean that actually sorts trash for recycling.

Most afternoons, this is where you’ll find us, along with the other sailors. When the boat-schooled kids finish their studies for they day, they take a dip in the pool while their parents relax.

Le Phare Bleu has an antique ship with a bar and music venue aboard called “The Lightship”. The bottom level has adorable lounge for cruisers and houses the bathroom and showering facilities for marina guests. It’s funny that we leave our boat to go shower on another boat.